500 Francs (Universal Declaration of Human Rights) – France

In 1998, France's currency situation was defined by its pivotal role in the final, irreversible transition to the euro. As a founding and driving force of the European Monetary Union (EMU), France, alongside other member states, had spent the preceding years rigorously meeting the Maastricht Treaty convergence criteria on inflation, interest rates, budget deficits, and public debt. The French franc, a symbol of national sovereignty, was in its final phase of existence, permanently locked into a fixed exchange rate with other participating currencies on January 1, 1999, at the establishment of the European Central Bank.

Domestically, this period was characterized by a state of "legal limbo" where prices were displayed in both francs and euros to acclimatize the public, though the franc remained the sole legal tender for everyday transactions. The Banque de France, operating under the new European System of Central Banks, was tasked with ensuring monetary stability and preparing for the logistical enormity of the physical currency changeover, scheduled for January 2002. Public sentiment was mixed, blending pride in European leadership with nostalgic anxiety over the loss of a familiar national symbol.

Thus, the currency situation in 1998 was one of confident technical preparation and profound symbolic transition. France had successfully aligned its economy with European partners, and the framework for the euro was legally and institutionally solidified. The year was less about economic crisis or fluctuation and more about the quiet yet historic countdown to surrendering monetary sovereignty, marking the end of the franc after centuries of circulation and a definitive step toward deeper European integration.